Fire Kills Family of 3

An elderly couple and their son died early Saturday when a fire swept through their home in the Casa do Oro area of Spring Valley, authorities said.

The blaze broke out shortly after 4 a.m. at the single-story home in the 4000 block of North Cordoba Street, said Division Chief Rick Sherard of the San Miguel Fire Department.

“There was a tremendous amount of smoke pouring out of the house when we arrived--very toxic smoke,” he said. “We have no idea how long that fire was smoldering before we got there.”

Found dead inside the house were William Frederick Evans, 67, a former aerospace worker at North Island Naval Air Station; his wife, Vivian Evans, 67, and the couple’s son Frederick Ryan Evans, 33.

Authorities said the father was found lying in the dining room and that his wife and his son, who investigators said suffered from Down’s Syndrome, were in a back bedroom.

More than 20 firefighters from the San Miguel, Lemon Grove and La Mesa fire departments battled the blaze. The origin of the fire was still under investigation, officers said.